Locked in

DAYTON, Ohio -- Motorcycle enthusiast Chuck Palumbo is usually the one building a masterpiece in his garage; on Friday Night SmackDown, however, "The Masterpiece" took apart the powerful Californian.

Moments after Palumbo stayed undefeated with an impressive Full Throttle win over Ace Steele, Chris Masters came from out of nowhere and blindsided Chuck. The extra-powerful "Masterpiece" then applied his dreaded Master Lock, a hold that has only ever been broken once. Palumbo tried to fight his way out of Masters' strong grip, but just like 99.9 percent of Masters' other victims, he eventually found himself down and out on the mat, thanks to "The Masterpiece's" punishing full nelson. Once the damage was done, Masters repeatedly yelled, "you shouldn't have messed with me Chuck, because that's what happens!"

It was the first time since his arrival on SmackDown that Palumbo has found himself in this position, and there's no telling what will happen if and when these two powerhouses from southern California next hook up inside the ring. Watch "The Masterpiece" attack Palumbo…

Down-home debut

After weeks of introductions to our fans, Jesse & Festus finally made their long-awaited SmackDown in-ring debut in Dayton. Just as Jesse promised, Festus was all business inside the squared circle; the seemingly placid and harmless country boy went from bumpkin to wrecking ball once the bell rang, finishing off the team Mike Tolar & Chad Collyer by nailing Collyer with an impressive looking drop-slam. Once the bell rang again, though, Festus returned to his seemingly hypnotic state as Jesse praised his efforts. Watch Jesse & Festus' victorious debut…

A Noble roll

Jamie Noble also continued his winning ways, defeating Jimmy Wang Yang in an exciting cruiserweight battle. Both men battled back and forth, but Noble was able to catch the high-flying redneck in his signature gutbuster for the pinfall. Noble is now 2-for-2 since Acting SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero made Hornswoggle abdicate the Cruiserweight Championship two weeks ago, and his latest victory may put him in the driver's seat on the road to crowning a new champion.

Big Red Beatdown

Kane was also on the winning track this week, dominating the self-proclaimed "Future Hall of Famer" Kenny Dykstra. Even the presence of his girlfriend, Victoria, outside the ring couldn't help poor Dykstra, whose recent hard luck continued when he succumbed to a vicious chokeslam.

Our fans finally heard some good news on the condition of General Manager Theodore Long this week. While talking to the mystery woman who attacked Torrie Wilson last week, Acting GM Vickie Guerrero revealed that Long is finally out of his coma. However, he's still in no condition to return to work, so Vickie will remain in charge of SmackDown for the foreseeable future. Surely, however, Vickie joins our fans and everyone in WWE in sending their best wishes to Long for a quick and full recovery.

David vs. Goliath

Just 48 hours before he faces Finlay at No Mercy, Rey Mysterio faced the biggest challenge of his career -- literally -- by taking on The Great Khali in SmackDown's main event. The overmatched Mysterio -- who gave up 21 inches and over 250 pounds to the Punjabi giant -- gave it his all against Khali, and looked to be in the driver's seat until Finlay interfered, causing a disqualification. Finlay & Khali's 2-on-1 attack was cut short however, as the giant's No Mercy opponent, Batista, ran to the ring to help Mysterio. The Animal said earlier in the night that he couldn't wait for the Punjabi Prison Match, and may have helped himself gain the upper hand by nailing Khali with a chair. Read the full story…

The Captain makes it happen

Matt Hardy & MVP may not be able to get along too well, but they've been impressive as WWE Tag Team Champions. The two continued bickering after MVP cheated to defeat Matt in a push-up contest, but somehow, SmackDown's "Odd Couple" held it together to once again retain the gold by defeating Deuce & Domino. Of course, it wasn't without a signature shortcut from MVP, whose low blow on Domino allowed Hardy to nail the Twist of Fate for the win. Next week, these two will have to step up their game even more, as when MVP tried to get Hardy vs. Undertaker made, he instead got his team a match next week against The Phenom and his brother, Kane. Read the full story…